South Elgin has to be taken seriously after two huge victories on successive weekends.
And with Adam Walker’s improved bat back in the lineup, the Storm seem all the more imposing.
Walker made a big return from illness Saturday by driving in the winning runs with a two-run double in the seventh inning of a 3-2 victory over St. Charles North.
“It was my first game back in over two weeks,” Walker said. “It was definitely a great game to come back to.”
Flu-like symptoms cost Walker four days of school, and he hadn’t played a game since March 24. The senior infielder/pitcher proved to be the key player in a crossover battle between favorites of the Upstate Eight Valley and River.
Walker missed a 5-2 victory April 1 by South Elgin (3-2, 1-0) over Fox Valley contender Huntley. He was also sidelined for a 9-3 win March 29 at Hampshire.
“He called me and said he was going to come back against Huntley,” Storm coach Jim Kating said. “I said, ‘Don’t come because you haven’t been at practice for three days. Get healthy.’ He really came through.”
Walker still wishes he’d made it to the Huntley game.
“I had to follow that one at home on GameChanger,” Walker said of the scorekeeping app. “I was pretty sick. I couldn’t even leave the house. It was frustrating. I was definitely ready to come back.”
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It’s probably no surprise Walker delivered a clutch hit. He batted .205 last spring when he played in 17 of 30 games, then built his confidence during summer.
In the last two summer high school seasons, Walker produced four late-game hits for winning or tying RBIs. Teammates began referring to him last summer as “Walk-Off Walker.”
“I put in a lot of work during the offseason with coaches,” Walker said. “I definitely have to say thanks to them for that.”
With leadoff hitter Bryant Diel batting .471 (8-for-17), Jack Watkins at .455 (5-for-11) and a powerful batting order, the addition of Walker could make for a pitcher’s nightmare.
The win over St. Charles North ended on a double play started by reliever Jack Stancl, with the tying run at third.
“This is how we have to play all the time,” Kating said. “I think the guys are starting to realize that.”
It was the conference opener for the Storm.
“It’s a lot of momentum going for us now, starting out conference,” Stancl said.
Maroon momentum: Elgin (2-7) has shown hitting can be a matter of momentum — or learning.
An at-bat Carlos Esparza had against Larkin to force a tie in the seventh led the way for the Maroons. He sent a 3-2 pitch to the opposite field with two out for an RBI after Elgin had only two hits in 12 innings.
Elgin lost 3-2, but followed it up the next day with a four-run first inning to beat West Aurora 5-3, keyed by Jack Sitter’s two-run single and a run-scoring single by Matt Turner.
“We tell the guys if you’re struggling offensively, you can’t try to do too much at the plate,” Elgin coach Dave Foerster said. “You’ve got to try to use the whole field. We just need that the whole game.”
On a mission: Elgin Academy (2-0) outscored its first two opponents 22-4 and hit four home runs coming off a spring break trip for practice and practice games at Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Ethan Hill has two solo homers among his four hits and Elgin Academy had a .818 slugging percentage starting this week.
“We’re playing like we have a chip on our shoulder,” Hilltoppers coach Steve Shapiro said. “It’s apparent they believe we should have gone farther last year than we did, that we left wins on the table.”
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